One More Visit Science Bro's College AU
by fluffygammawolf
Summary: When Bruce and Tony first met they thought they had their whole lives ahead of them, and they did for a while, but happieness doesn't last forever… Tony visits Bruce's grave and remembers their lives together while he tries to hold himself together. (( I.e this is angsty at times and sometimes fluffy and happy but mostly angst.))


Tony sighed shakily as he ran his hand through his, now black, hair. Natasha was waiting in the car for him. She had been staying with him lately to keep him company and keep him safe, especially on days when he visited Bruce's grave. His hand was trembling while he set the bright red roses on the bleak gravestone. The collar of his black duffle coat was pulled up to cover the back of his neck. The arc reactor was giving off a small blue glow through his shirt.

"Hey Bruce ..." he murmured, ignoring the bone chilling breeze that cut through his coat. "Sorry it took me so long to visit this time... i-it's been rough without ya, ya know..." he sat down and leaned against the stone. "Why did you have to go?" Tony's voice cracked as he finally uttered the question he had been keeping locked inside of himself. A burning tear ran down his cheek as he sniffled. Tony's mind wandered back to how he and his husband had first met.

_Tony had bright blue hair and a silver eyebrow piercing. He had been helping the art club finish painting the banner for the College spirit week, and he had been playfully flinging paint at Natasha to try and annoy her. He had paint all over his black painting shirt and so did she. He was just glad the arc reactor was covered by the shirt. She even had blue and yellow paint splatters in her short red hair. He laughed and flung green paint at her again but she ducked out of the way and it flew over to a shy guy sitting in the corner. The paint managed to get on the guy's hair, face, and purple shirt. Tony stopped laughing quickly and his face paled._

"_Shit... sorry guy didn't mean for that to get on ya..." Tony said quickly as he rushed over with a towel._

_The brown haired kid gave him a small laugh as he wiped the green paint from his scruff, "I-its o-okay. I-I know you didnt mean to..." Tony's jaw almost dropped when he saw the guy's eyes. One was a rich, warm brown while the other was an almost impossibly bright shade of green._

_The guy blushed slightly and looked down again, "Th-thanks for the towel..." he murmured as he began to wipe the green paint from his face._

"_Hey no problem... cute eyes by the way. I-I'm Tony." He blurted out before rushing back over to his painting station. Tony had been so embarrassed and upset at himself. Usually he could be Mr. Cool and score a date in no time, but this guy, Bruce, had been different. Natasha laughed and smirked as she gave Tony a gentle shove to the shoulder. "Way to go Mr. Cool. I could hit on guys better and I don' even date em'. Hell I'm goin' on my first date with Pepper tonight." She laughed as she went back to painting. Tony just rolled his eyes and smiled to himself as he continued to paint. For the rest of the day he kept glancing up to watch Bruce. When the banner was almost done Tony peered up again, looking through his blue bangs that had fallen in his face. He sighed sadly when he didn't see Bruce in the corner. Tony had figured that Bruce had left._

"_L-looking for me?" Bruce asked from behind Tony. Tony turned around quickly with the biggest grin on his face._

Tony sniffled and let out a small laugh to himself as he continued to wipe away his cascading tears. "I-I was so lucky that you made the first date Brucie, cause it was like I forgot every word I ever knew. I-I'm blaming it on how cute your scruffy hair was maybe on your comic book t-shirt too ya nerd." He leaned his head back against Bruce's grave stone and closed his eyes, letting the tears stream down his face freely as he thought back to their first date.

_Tony had been nervously checking how he looked in the mirror when the doorbell went off. He quickly opened up the door with a wide grin. "You made it, cool. So um... I ordered some pizza and I uh... I was thinking we could have a scary movie marathon?" His face flushed when his voice cracked._

_Bruce laughed softly and smiled at Tony, "Sounds pretty cool to me. I uh... I brought popcorn." He added as he held the microwavable bags up._

_Tony smiled again, causing his bright brown eyes to glisten, "Awesome. come on in." He laughed nervously as he ran his hand through his hair. He stepped aside so that Bruce could come in to his house. The living room was very large and had rich wood floors. There was a soft dark red rug in the middle of the room, right in front of the black couch. The T.V was mounted above the stone fireplace, which had a steady fire going causing them to be wrapped in a blanket like warmth. _

_Bruce smiled as he looked around, "Wow... this is pretty cool." he commented as he set the two popcorn bags down on a black marble counter top._

_Tony blushed shyly and rubbed the back of his head, "Y-yeah my parents... left me the house i-in the will so uh... yeah." Tony had thought he blew it with that last remark but Bruce only gave him a sympathetic smile._

"_That was really nice of them, so is it all paid off?" Bruce asked curiously as he moved to take off his tan jacket and dark blue scarf. It had been a chilly night, almost thirty degrees. _

"_Yep. It's nice not having to deal with that." Tony was surprised that Bruce wasn't judging him for the fact that he'd been left a large inheritance from his parents. Especially his father, Howard Stark, who had run Stark Industries until he dies in the car crash. Now Obie was taking care of the company while Tony went to school and tried to avoid going back to the company as much as possible, hence why he was in NewYork not California with Obie._

"_I'd bet it is nice." Bruce murmured with a small smile as he sat down on the couch. "H-having parents giving you an inheritance I mean..." Bruce blushed slightly as he finished his sentence. He had never really known his mother and his father was the biggest asshole on the planet. _

_Tony nodded shyly as he went to the fridge, "So uh... want water or soda... oh I have some apple juice too." He offered as he peered into his fridge._

"_What kind of soda?" Bruce asked curiously._

"_Rootbeer, want that?" Tony asked as he grabbed two hard plastic cups._

"_Sure rootbeer sound good." Bruce replied with a smile as he turned to watch Tony. _

"Once the pizza guy came and we started the movie y-you kept jumping and hiding under that blanket I had set up... it was stupidly cute." He chuckled sadly as another tear rolled off of his face and onto Bruce's grave stone. His sad laughs soon turned into quiet sobs as he put his hand over his face. "Why'd you have to go so soon?" he cried out. "We had our whole lives planned out Brucie... I was gonna propose finally and then we were gonna get you that kitten you saw at the pound th-that had that stumpy tail, a-and I was gonna get a puppy cause why not..." He paused to take in a stuttering breath. "We were gonna adopt a billion kids and be the best fucking parents in the whole world Brucie..." The grey clouds above him seemed to start crying with Tony as chilling rain drops fell on his face. "M-maybe I should just stay out here n'freeze to death at least I'd be with you then." he whispered defeatedly.

_It had been a couple years since Bruce and Tony had started dating, five to be exact, and Tony couldn't have been happier. He had been ring shopping for the past couple of weeks considering that Gay Marriage had finally been legalized in New York. Tony was just walking through the door when he saw Bruce fall to his knees clutching his stomach. Bruce started to vomit up a thick red, almost black bile. Tony dropped the bag that had the ring in it and rushed over to his boyfriend ignoring the putrid smell that was filling the air. Bruce was already crying as he retched again._

"_Oh my god... It'll be okay Hun just hold on alright." Tony said soothingly as he picked him up. He grabbed the dish cloth off of the countertop and gently wiped up the remaining bile from Bruce's pale face. God he felt too hot under Tony's hand._

_Bruce was crying quietly as he curled up against Tony. He looked like a small child in this position, "I-I'm sorry Tony I didn't mean to make a mess..." Tony's heart clenched. Why was Bruce apologizing? No one could control themselves when they had to puke..._

"_Hey." Tony interrupted as he snagged the brown blanket from the couch. It was Bruce's favorite blanket to fall asleep with on the couch. "Don't worry about it Brucie. We all have accidents okay?" He murmured gently, his voice trembling with worry as he carefully draped the soft blanket over Bruce. "Lets just get you to the doctors... don't give up on me okay?"_

_Bruce only managed a weak nod as he shivered and cried. His stomach was churning painfully and his fever was too high. He whimpered when he was buckled into the passengers seat of Tony's car. He felt like he would throw up again and his throat burned. He was sweating and shaking as he leaned against the cool window. Bruce gripped onto his blanket weakly as he tried not to cry again. He wanted to be strong for Tony._

_Tony was worried that Bruce wouldn't even make it to the hospital as he drove. He kept checking on his boyfriend whenever he was at a stop light or stuck behind a turning car. Thankfully they made it to the hospital, and Tony held Bruce close as he tried to fill out the paperwork with one hand. Finally there was been an available doctor and Bruce was brought into the Doctor's room. Tony had been forced to wait in the waiting room. The white walls seemed to be getting smaller and his hands shook nervously. He couldn't get them to stop. The clock on the wall seemed to take an eternity for the red second hand to make one tick. Tony hadn't realized he was crying until his cheek felt scorched by the burning drop of water. He finally put his face in his hands and began to cry silently._

_An hour later Tony was led to Bruce's hospital room, but before he was allowed in the doctor sighed and looked down sadly. It was that same look that you would see all the T.V doctors give someone when they were going to tell them the grim prognosis. The look made Tony's heart jump into his throat and his stomach churn,_

_The doctor had silver streaks in his jet black hair and wrinkles that he seemed too young to have, "I'm sorry but your boyfriend is in the terminal stage of Leukemia. We've got him on something that should fight back the fever and make the pain stop. We're looking at a month maybe less than that... I'm terribly sorry."_

_Tony's whole world crashed around him and he shoved past the doctor to get into Bruce's room. It was clearly a hospice care room. The bed was made specifically for comfort, the chart on the wall had different activities or things that could be brought up to the room._

"_You're crying..." Bruce's quiet, hoarse voice brought Tony out of his thoughts._

_He wiped his eyes quickly, "I-I was just worried about ya Brucie..." He tried to smile, but it wavered as his throat clenched painfully as he tried to hold back his sobs. _

"_Just... just sit by me okay?" Bruce's own voice was wavering. He hard dark circles under both eyes. Those eyes which had seemed so bright and full of life were now dull and dark with sadness. "I know what the doctor told you Tony... I'm sick not deaf okay?"_

_Tony nodded and shakily held Bruce's hand. "I don't care what that doctor says you're gonna make it cause you're the toughest guy I know."_

"_Tony-"_

"_No!" Tony interrupted with tears in his eyes. "You're gonna make it Bruce Banner. Do you hear me? Say it with me. I'm gonna make it." _

_Bruce sighed weakly and repeated what Tony told him to. "Just promise me one thing alright?"_

"_Anything love," Tony replied softly _

"_When- if I die you have to keep on living okay? Move on with your life. Get that job you wanted and get my cat," Bruce's eyes watered and his voice wavered. "You're gonna name that cat Brucie cause I can already see it in your eyes, and you're going to move on with your life." _

"_But... Brucie-"_

"_Promise me Tony." Bruce said determinedly._

"_I... I promise Brucie." Tony murmured before kissing Bruce's cheek. "I love you."_

"_I love you too Tony." Bruce's eyes were watering again and tears threatened to fall down his cheeks. "I-I'm really scared Tony... I don't want to die." _

_Even though it was against the hospital's rule Tony carefully climbed into bed with Bruce and held im gently. "I know... but I-I'm gonna be with you all the time. I'll be strong enough for both of us okay?" Bruce just nodded and curled up against Tony's chest and began to cry quietly. The arc reactor always made Bruce feel a little better, like his own personal night light, and right now he needed to be held close. Tony held Bruce close, his heart clenched painfully at how small Bruce seemed now. The familiar scent of his boyfriend was masked by the oversteralized smell of hospitals, but Tony wasn't going to let himself be bothered by something so minor. He was going to make sure that Bruce felt comfortable and at peace. He began to hum gently, ignoring the pain in his throat from the tears he was actively holding back. Tony continued to hum until he knew that Bruce was asleep and then he finally began to let himself cry quietly. His whole body shook as if he had pushed it past its limits. _

_They only had two weeks together before Bruce passed away. Tony had requested one of those marriages that the hospital offers for the terminal patients. It had been beautiful, at least it was to Tony. He had dressed up in a tux and helped Bruce put on his favorite bowtie with smiley faces on it. Tony always thought it was cheesy, but Bruce would just laugh and say 'That's the point. It makes ya smile.' Bruce smiled weakly as Tony sat next to him. Tony had wiped Bruce's tears gently as the priest began to start the ceremony. When they had said their vows Tony gently slid the ring onto his husband's finger, and helped Bruce when he wanted to put Tony's ring on for him. It had just been a small ceremony, apart from the priest there were a couple nurses who came in with white roses for the two newly weds. Natasha, Pepper, and Clint had been there too, Steve and Thor couldn't make it which was alright. Bruce had seemed to enjoy the small ceremony better. For the rest of the day Tony had held Bruce and they recounted how they had met and all of their embarrassing stories, when it started to get dark outside around five pm Tony put on Bruce's favorite movie, 101 dalmatians. Sure it was a kids movie but it was a classic. That night Bruce had requested spaghetti for dinner and the nurses couldn't say no, hardly anyone could when Bruce asked. Tony and Bruce had eaten the spaghetti Lady and the Tramp style and Tony's eyes watered slightly when they kissed. _

_Tony couldn't bring himself to think that Bruce wouldn't get any better even though that was what the doctors were always telling him. Tony had to believe that Brucee would be able to beat this and that they could go home and live the life they had always wanted to. They fell asleep during a marathon of Disney movies. Tony was holding Bruce protectively while he slept. Even in his sleep he was afraid to let Bruce go._

_Later that night, somewhere around midnight according to the doctors, Bruce had passed away. The doctors kept telling Tony it was the most peaceful way to go. Bruce had been curled up in Tony's arms like a small child and there was a small smile on his face. When Tony woke up in the morning and discovered that Bruce had died he couldn't stop the tidal wave of sobs and tears that exploded out of him. He held Tony closer than he had before, still being careful because he was afraid he would hurt his frail husband. _

"_You gotta wake up Brucie... you just gotta!" It had taken several of the nurses to convince Tony to finally let go, and even then Tony couldn't stop crying. His heart ached and his throat was clenched painfully. Everytime he tried to stop crying he only ended up letting out another sob a few seconds later. He was offered a ride home but he refused. He couldn't go home and bear being alone. He didn't even want to think about life without Bruce. He hadn't been without Bruce for years, and the only reason he didn't have Bruce at his house was that they hadn't met yet._

_At the funeral almost everyone that knew Bruce and Tony showed up to pay their respects, Natasha, Pepper, Betty, Steve, Thor, Clint, Coulson, even Fury showed up. Tony had dyed his hair black and couldn't stop his hands from shaking the entire day. When the reception was done and almost everyone had left Tony began to cry again as he sat in front of Bruce's casket. He held his face in his hands, his unkempt hair fell over his face as he did so._

"_Tony... i-it's time to go." said a soft voice. For a split second Tony thought it had been Bruce but it was only Pepper, Tony's best friend since high school. He nodded with a sniffle as he steeled himself, even though his chest felt like it would cave in. He gently pressed his hand to Bruce's casket one last time whispering a small 'I love you...' before leaving with Pepper and Natasha. They had been staying at his place since Bruce died to keep Tony company and to keep an eye on him. _

Tony rubbed the ring on his finger sadly as he turned to look at Bruce's grey marble gravestone again.

'_Here lies Bruce Stark-Banner. A loving husband and the best of friends. Rest in Peace.' _ Tony had requested that Bruce's ring be molded into the gravestone. It looked like a star just above his name.

Tony pressed a small kiss the the gravestone before standing up, "I made a promise Brucie... you're cat's coming home today." He gave a wavering smile. "I'll be back soon okay?" With that he slowly began to walk back to his car as the rain began to pick up. His dark hair soaked and was dripping in his face as he walked. His coat was useless now, just a dripping wet piece of cloth weighing him down. The car started up again when Pepper could see Tony walking back towards the car. Natasha stepped out of the car with an umbrella for him and gave him one of her rare hugs.


End file.
